Because of the subject of my next book, Happier at Home, I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about—you guessed it!—how to be happier at home. Here are a few very simple suggestions. These aren’t the most profound things you can do to make your home feel more serene and organized, but they’re steps you can take fairly quickly.

1. Be wary of bargains, sales, hand-me-downs and give-away. Do you really need this thing? Or love it? Beware: because of the “endowment effect,” we value things more once we own them. Once that thing enters your home, it will be tough to get it out again.

8. Put things away in a specific place. It’s much easier to find things later, and it’s oddly satisfying to slot things into their precise places. “Ah, this particular basket on this shelf is the place for the AAA batteries.”

9. Make your bed. I know it sounds trivial, but it’s a bigger happiness booster than you’d expect.

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If I feel overwhelmed by cleaning (as I sometimes do), I start with what to me is the biggest eyesore, something that gets under my skin to look at. For example, I can’t stand in when my sofa bed has coats strewn on it, and clutter, so I tidy and arrange it first. The rest is easy after that. Dishes too (no dishwasher), I organize them first, which pleases my mind, then I do the ones that will make the biggest difference regarding space.

http://www.facebook.com/Lisha.Cramer.Hudson Alisha Hudson

I organize my dishes too!

Evelina

Instead of throwing away stuff, couldn’t you simply tell the restaurant to give you less? That’s what I do with wasabi, which we don’t eat at all. I simply kindly ask not to give it to me, otherwise it would be wasted…

http://www.facebook.com/Lisha.Cramer.Hudson Alisha Hudson

I do the same when I clean. I always start in one corner, and then move around the room going from one corner to the next.

http://chasek8.wordpress.com Katherine

I agree with all of these and I usually accomplish many. For me the ones that rang most true were #6, 7 and 9. It is very important that we remember not to let our idea of perfection get in our own way. This happens so often and without our even realizing it at all. You are so right when you say “spending 10 minutes cleaning off one shelf is better than fantasizing about spending the weekend cleaning the basement. The little things all add up.
As for #7, clean while you cook. This is something that I have made a habit of doing and it has really helped. I find the kitchen is the hardest room in the house to keep clean, and it is a room that make an overall difference. When I have a clean kitchen my home feels more comfortable and looks tidier overall. The same goes for #9, making your bed is a good habit and it always makes a room appear more organized.

Great tips, as always.

DLJ

Pretty perfect list. Thanks!

http://amandamagee.com amandamagee

Yes! I’ve been seeing the “Comparison is the thief of joy” all over the place lately and it has finally sunk in to a point that I can apply it to myself. Another one is focusing on what is unfair, everything then piles up and all aspects of life can seem hopeless.

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Gretchen Rubin

Gretchen Rubin
is one of the most thought-provoking and influential writers on habits and happiness. Her next book, Better than Before, is about how we change our habits. Her books The Happiness Project and Happier at Home were both instant New York Times bestsellers, and The Happiness Project spent more than two years on the bestseller list, including at #1. Her books have sold more than two million copies, in 30 languages. Here, she writes about her adventures as she test-drives ideas from contemporary science and ancient wisdom about building good habits and a happier life.

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